Verstappen feeling no added pressure after Red Bull switch

Max Verstappen says he feels no extra pressure to perform in the Spanish Grand Prix after being promoted from Toro Rosso to Red Bull.

The 18-year-old has swapped seats with Daniil Kvyat following the Russian's error-strewn start to the campaign.

Kvyat collided with former Red Bull star Sebastian Vettel twice in the opening three corners of the Russian Grand Prix last weekend, with Kvyat's Australian team-mate Daniel Ricciardo getting caught up in the melee and losing time as a result.

Vettel had to retire on the first lap and launched an expletive-laden rant to his Ferrari engineers over the Russian driver's actions. The German had admonished the 22-year-old just two weeks earlier following another collision between the pair, which came about because of another risky opening-lap overtake from Kvyat.

Verstappen - who has taken 13 points from four races in 2016 - will step into the breach in the RB12 for the Spanish Grand Prix at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya next week.

"Hopefully it will be faster [than Toro Rosso's STR11], that's the main target. I just hope to feel comfortable in the car because that's what a driver needs," Verstappen told Red Bull's official website.

"We'll find out in Barcelona. I have never driven the RB12 before, it will be a new experience and there are a lot of procedures to learn, but I'm up for it.

"I go there [Barcelona] with no expectations to be honest. I just want to adapt to the car, understand it better and better every session and like I said before, study the data and see what my team-mate is doing because the most important thing is to score points.

"I wouldn't say [I feel] more pressure to be honest. Of course I'm driving for a top team now, but in the end you always try to do your best which is what I always try to do. For me, I don't feel more pressure."

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